This article is a follow-up to my hands on examination of an “Original Superman III Christopher Reeve” costume sent to me by another collector (see: High Resolution Photo Reference Archive: “Original Superman III Christopher Reeve Costume”), and as part of my ongoing series of articles about costumes in the marketplace attributed to use by Christopher Reeve in the Superman films of the 70s and 80s.
What follows are photos sent to me by yet another collector, showing what is claimed to be unused fabric of the same type/style/weave/manufacture used to make the original costumes for the Superman films.
These are photos of those “original” swatches of fabric with modern two-way heavy duty spandex pieces overlaid for comparison of color, weave, and other characteristics:
High Resolution Archive: Original Fabric vs. Spandex 939×784
This collector describes the “original” fabric as “thick, heavy and [with] a unique “metallic” sheen to it – mostly caused by the specific weave pattern“. He says that he has “not seen any modern day spandex or lycra which have the same sort of “sheen” on them“. He also says “[i]t was also a lot more “teal green” in person than it appears on photos”.
Here is a close-up of the modern spandex sample over the “original” fabric:
These are photos of the same “original” swatches of fabric compared with my high resolution photos of the aforementioned “Superman III” costume, at the same size/scale, with my photo (inset, aligned bottom left) over the photo of the swatches:
High Resolution Archive: Superman Fabric Comparison 1818×1872
This is a close-up comparison of the two blue fabric types (“original” fabric sample top, “Superman III” costume bottom):
This is an extreme close-up comparison of the two blue fabric types (“original” fabric sample top, “Superman III” costume bottom):
Getting back to the comparisons of the “original” fabric and the modern spandex, here are some comparisons of the red material.
This photo shows the image of the first photo in this article, now with a cropped close-up photo of the red trunks that are part of the “Superman III” costume (bottom cropped photo on angle with blue zipper):
High Resolution Archive: Original Fabric vs. Modern Spandex vs. “Superman III” 1000 x 1000
This is a close-up from the same photo (modern spandex top left, “original” fabric right, “Superman III” sample bottom left):
For further comparison, here are two photos of two fully authenticated Superman costumes offered for sale to the marketplace that were accompanied by paperwork direct from Warner Bros.
The Prop Store of London Superman III Body Suit:
ScreenUsed Superman III Body Suit:
“Original” Superman Fabric Swatches in Artificial Light:
“Original” Superman Fabric Swatches in Natural Light/Daylight:
Jason De Bord
Additional Related Articles: Market Watch | Superman